It has been described as "the greatest camping trip of all
time," a voyage of high adventure, an exercise in manifest destiny
which carried the American flag overland to the Pacific. The
Lewis and Clark Expedition was all of this and more. Between
1804 and 1806, Lewis and Clark made the first systematic reports,
based on scientific measurement and observations, of the Missouri
River--not only its course, but its flora and fauna, depth and
current, tributaries and inhabitants. They continued onward
to document their observations in the Rocky Mountains and the
Pacific Northwest. Lewis and Clark described for science at
least 120 mammals, birds, reptiles and fish, as well as at least
182 plant species. They made the first attempt at a systematic
record of the meteorology of the West, and less successfully
attempted to determine the latitude and longitude of significant
geographical points. These facts set them apart from other contemporary
expeditions, most notably those of Zebulon Pike, which made
no new scientific discoveries.

Animal species encountered
included grizzly bear, buffalo, black tailed deer and bighorn
sheepCourtesy Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, National
Park Service

As the expedition began to move up the Missouri River, Lewis
focused on the details--the animals, the type of rocks, the
trees and grasses--along the route. How fast was the current?
How high the cliffs? Was that bird or plant different from one
known in the East? Lewis went on to describe some of the animals,
including the eastern wood rat--the first animal new to science
encountered on the voyage--in what is today Osage County, Missouri.
The explorers encountered fierce grizzly bears which attacked
them. The bears were so tough that even several rifle shots
wouldn't kill them. The grizzly bears were truly the kings of
the western plains. Lewis and Clark were fascinated with the
little prairie dogs that built huge underground villages. They
saw so many buffalo that at one point they recorded that they
had to "club them out of the way." Other new species that the
Corps of Discovery encountered included pronghorn antelopes,
bighorn sheep, black tailed deer (or mule deer), mountain beaver,
white weasel, mountain goat, coyote and various species of rabbit,
squirel, fox and wolf. In addition to their descriptions, Lewis
and Clark sent back a large number of zoological specimens,
including a few live ones, as well as skins, bones, skeletons,
teeth, talons and horns. Among the five live animals Lewis sent
Jefferson in 1805 was a "barking squirrel," or black-tailed
prairie dog, which lived out the rest of its life at the White
House.

The geographical findings were in themselves of outstanding
significance. Lewis and Clark determined the true course of
the Upper Missouri and its major tributaries. They discovered
that a long, instead of short, portage separated it from the
Columbia River, which proved to be a majestic stream rivaling
the Missouri itself rather than a short coastal river. Neither
the Missouri nor the Columbia was found to be navigable to its
source, as many had believed. The explorers also learned that,
instead of a narrow and easily traversed mountain range, two
broad north-south systems, the Rockies and the Cascades, represented
major barriers. Passing for the most part through country that
no European-Americans had seen, the two captains dotted their
map with names of streams and natural features.

William Clark drew this map of part of the continent of
North America in 1805Image from Library of Congress Geography and Map Division,
g3300 ct000586

Clark made his scientific mark primarily in the field of cartography,
for which his training consisted mainly of some experience in
practical surveying and a limited amount of Army mapping. Yet
his relatively crude maps, prepared under field conditions,
enriched geographical knowledge and stimulated cartographical
advances. Of particular importance were the three progressively
improved maps Clark drew between 1804 and 1810 of the Western
United States and lower Canada. These were mainly based on the
observations of the two captians, data provided by the Indians,
earlier maps of the West, and the journals of preceding explorers.
According to historical cartographer Carl I. Wheat, the last
of the three (c.1809) was of "towering signficance"
and was "one of the most influential ever drawn" of
the United States.

Two of the botanical specimens discovered by Lewis and Clark,
and hence named after them--the white Philadelphus lewisii
(Lewis's mock orange, and the state flower of Idaho) above,
and the pink Clarkia pulchella (pinkfairies) belowPhotos by Dave Powell, USDA Forest Service, www.forestryimages.org

Lewis and Clark also made significant additions to the botanical
knowledge of the continent. Jefferson believed that the voyages
of discovery would add to the world's supply of food crops and
plants beneficial to human kind. Lewis and Clark were directed
to pay special attention to "the soil & face of the
country, it's growth & vegetable productions, especially
those not of the U.S." Lewis and Clark collected hundreds
of plant specimens and recorded information on their habitats,
growth, and uses by American Indians. Lewis showed a talent
for observation, exemplified in his description of camas, sometimes
known as quamash, an important food plant for the Nez Perce.
In a beautifully crafted essay for his journal record, Lewis
carefully described the plant's natural environment, its physical
structure, the ways Nez Perce women harvested and prepared camas,
and its role in the Indian diet. The explorers discovered about
80 species new to science, including future state flowers for
Oregon, Idaho, and Montana, as well as the state grass of Montana.
Their collections formed the basis for the first major scientific
publication that described and illustrated the plants west of
the Mississippi River. Lewis and Clark sent back numerous botanical
specimens during the expedition, orignially held in two collections,
one in Britain and another at the American
Philisophical Society in Philadelphia. In the latter half
of the 19th century, the two collections were brought together
in their permanent Phildelphia home of the Academy
of Natural Sciences.

More than a mere stunt to see if the continent could be crossed
and conquered, more than a diplomatic mission to Indian peoples,
the Lewis and Clark Expedition was a scientific foray. It is
this aspect of the expedition, fulfilled in every sense, which
sets the Lewis and Clark Expedition apart and plays a major
role in its resonance 200 years later.

For more information please see The
Science of the Lewis and Clark Expedition on the Jefferson
National Expansion Memorial Lewis and Clark Website, portions
of which were excerpted for this piece. Additional information
for this essay was taken from: Ferris, Robert G.
and Roy E. Appleman, eds. Lewis and Clark: Historic Places
Associated With Their Transcontinental Exploration (1804-06).
Washington, D.C.: United States Department of the Interior,
National Park Service, 1975.